Last year Nobel laureate Derek Walcott pulled out of the election for Oxford professor of poetry; now the only woman standing in this year's contest, poet Paula Claire, has withdrawn in protest over what she is describing as "serious flaws" in the election process that she believes have pushed best-known candidate Geoffrey Hill ahead of all other contenders.

Claire, an Oxford-based poet who hoped to "provide a comprehensive update on the hidden mass of innovative 20th-century poetic forms; show how the tradition of group speaking of poetry has been revitalised; and encourage the use of modern technology in the service of poetry" if she were elected, informed Oxford University yesterday that she would no longer be running in the election.

She is protesting over the fact that she was described as a "performer and artist" in Oxford's announcement of the 11 candidates for the post, omitting the fact that she is a poet. The "last straw", she said, was a flysheet published last week in Oxford's Gazette, the official journal of the university. supporting Hill. It called Hill, the frontrunner for the election, "quite simply a giant" and "the finest living poet in English today".

Describing the flysheet as "repugnant" and "deliberately written to devalue all other bona fide candidates", she said today that the university was supporting Hill for the post "and the rest of us are ignored as not worthy to be in the set-up". "I'm very happy to say that he is one of the finest poets in English today – I agree with that. But not the finest," she said. "That is grossly over the top. They shouldn't allow it ahead of the election – an election is supposed to be a fair system and until the voters come in everybody's equal."

Oxford said any candidate for the post was entitled to publish a flysheet in the Gazette, providing they had the support of 10 members of the university's congregation (dons or senior administrators). Other candidates, including Beat poet and musician Michael Horovitz, South African poet Chris Mann, Anthony Burgess's biographer Roger Lewis and Guardian journalist Stephen Moss, had yet to do so.

"I haven't withdrawn in a pique – I've withdrawn for women," said Claire. "The post was founded in 1708. They haven't had a woman since then and I think they're still determined to put a man in." Her resignation letter demanded that an independent committee unconnected with the university's faculty of English be set up to run the election "in a genuinely reformed and modern way: efficiently, transparently and democratically, backed up by advice from internet experts and given an independent complaints procedure".

"Only then can this august chair, founded in 1708, be restored to its rightful position of eminence and independence to instruct in the great art of poetry to which I am dedicated, and be a truly cultural force in the structure of the university," she wrote.

A University of Oxford spokesperson said that while the university was "disappointed" to learn of Claire's withdrawal, it did "not accept her allegations that the election process has been unfair". "No special arrangements have been made for this election that are inconsistent with normal university operations in this respect," said the spokesperson. "The university published a brief line on each candidate in announcing the final list of confirmed nominees as part of a news release, and the process by which these were composed was the same for all candidates. Paula Claire expressed dissatisfaction with the wording of her description, and the description was duly changed as soon as her complaint was received."

Ruth Padel was elected to the position of Oxford poetry professor last May, but resigned after only nine days in the post when it emerged that she had pointed out allegations of sexual harassment made against Walcott to two journalists. The position, previously held by Christopher Ricks, has subsequently been empty, with the new incumbent due to take up their role this autumn. Oxford graduates are able to vote for their favourite candidate online until 16 June, with the winner to be announced on 18 June.